Never Giving Up
by diamondstar1808
Summary: Story is based on after the series when Darien returns from America. SO much has changed. Has his love for Serena died? Has her love for him changed?
1. Homecoming

I don't own the characters, just the story. Please no bad reviews.

(Flashback)

"Serena, this is the last chance for me to say this. Darien isn't any good for you. He's been in America for two years. He hasn't even come to visit you all this time!" Seiya exclaimed running a hand through his messy hair.

Serena merely shook her head.

"Listen, what if you were in his position? Would you want to me to stay with you?" She asked stricken.

"No. I wouldn't be selfish. If you fell in love with someone else I'd understand. So will you come with me? I love you." He said frustrated and a tear began to roll down on of his eyes.

She wiped some tears off of her face, and then she wiped his stray tear away sadly.

"No." She said firmly still looking into his beautiful eyes.

"Fine" He said closing his eyes.

He moved away from her and placed his shades on. He turned on his heel and walked to his boarding tunnel to his airplane- not looking back or saying good-bye.

(End of Flashback)

Serena came out of her trance and went into the airport slowly. Seiya happened along time ago. Her true love was waiting for her now….

Darien was there waiting on her. He'd just come home for good and her was starting worry she would bring him bad news like she'd found someone else. She was ten minutes late so far.

' She's never on time. Maybe she just running late.' He thought trying to calm himself.

Serena felt herself become nervous. What if he didn't look the same? She hadn't seen him in three years and she was now twenty-one. She was faithful to him the whole time he was gone. Had he been faithful to her? She went to the flight exit where he said he would be. She picked up the pace a little to try to find him. Suddenly, she stopped. He was standing a little way from her. She looked at him, frozen in time. He was standing about 6 feet 4. He'd grown some… he had a nice tan, same beautiful eyes, and hair. She smiled through the tears she hadn't notice that started to fall. She took off at full speed to reach him.

"Darien!" She yelled through the crowd.

He turned to see her coming towards him. He ran to meet her. He scooped her in his arms and hugged her tightly.

"I've missed you so much." He said crying softly.

She reached up and kissed him passionately, he returned it full heartedly. As they came up for air, he simply smiled down on her.

"I've missed everything about you. I like your new hair cut." He said.

She smiled at him for noticing. She had cut her hair in layers that stop midway down her back.

"Thanks. Come-on, I know you are probably hungry so let me cook something for you." She said taking his hand leading the way to the luggage area.

"What? You can cook now?" He asked amazed.

"Of course. A few years can change anyone." She said quietly.

He said nothing but squeezed her hand tightly praying that nothing drastic had changed between them.


	2. Things Happen

I own the story not the characters. Please don't sue! Please no bad reviews. Enjoy!

Two Months later…  
Sitting on the park bench by herself, Serena thought about how much Darien had been into his studies. She honestly thought he was done with schooling but boy was she wrong. She looked down at the promise ring on her left hand, that he had given her so many years ago. She took it off and looked at it as the sun gleamed of the diamond. She sighed and put it back on her hand. It was six o'clock in the morning and she was out jogging. It became a habit after he left. Darien always loved her but he really never showed it. Maybe because they hadn't seen each other in like forever. She was starting to believe what Seiya kept trying to tell her but she was too stubborn. She glanced one more time over the lake and she stood up. She took her ring off. She wanted to throw it into the lake from frustration but decided to put it back on her hand again. She walked slowly back to the apartment- to tired to jog back. Once she reached her apartment she noticed a girl outside of her door and she was banging on the door.  
"Excuse me, what do you think you're doing?" Serena asked trying her best from being rude.  
"Oh, sorry if I am disturbing you. I'm trying to wake up the guy in here." the girl said nonchalantly.  
Serena scoffed and rolled her eyes. Something was totally wrong here.  
"Um… this is my place and my fiancée's." Serena said placing a hand on her hip.  
"Oh, well I'm trying to wake him." The girl said and began banging on the door again.  
The door swung open and Darien looked as if he was ready to kill.  
"What the hell do you want? Who do you think I am?" He yelled at her.  
The girl rang and hid behind Serena.  
"Well my cousin from the States said she needed you. Since you were such a good medical student maybe we could be a good doctor-" The girl stuttered mixing her sentences.  
"Will you get it together." Darien said impatiently.  
Serena had never seen Darien lose his cool or be rude to anyone.  
"Alright! My cousin is stuck with some new virus and she needs your research plans from your medical class. She said it might lead to something." She said slightly terrified of the grouchy man.  
"Where's your cousin?" Darien asked running a hand through his hair.  
"Uh…could we move this conversation inside of the living room please." Serena asked wanting to find out more about what was going on.  
"Sure" Darien said opening the door wide enough for them to enter.

Later that afternoon…  
"Lita, I'm telling you, he's so caught up in his work that he barely has time for me." Serena said washing dishes angrily. Lita had come by while Darien had stepped out the library.  
"Aw come on girl. You know Darien has a hard time showing his emotions." She said trying to cheer and calm Serena down.  
Serena pulled the metal stopper out of the sink with a hard yank. She didn't know that a knife's tip was stuck in one of the grooves. When she yanked it, it cut her hand from her thumb to her wrist in a diagonal.  
"Ow!" She screeched slinging her hand.  
Her promise ring flung into the sink and down the drain.  
"Did what I think just go down the drain?" Lita gaped. Blood seeped down Serena's arm quickly.  
"Get me some cloth or something" She said to Lita in a panic. Lita ran down the hall as Serena ran to get a phone. She dialed Andrew's number. He lived two apartments down. The phone rang three times before he picked up.  
"Hello?" He greeted.  
"CAN you get over here now. It's a life or death matter." Serena whimpered.  
"Yeah, for who?" He asked seriously.  
"Me"  
"Okay. I'm on the way." He said hanging up.  
Within moments he came barging into the apartment ready for action. He saw Lita applying pressure to Serena's arm.  
"What's the problem?" He asked.  
"My engagement ring went down…" she trailed off fainting into Lita.  
"The drain." Lita finished trying to wake Serena.  
Andrew headed into the kitchen and searched for pliers to get the ring. He quickly found some and took the bottom part of the pipe from under the sink apart. Lita was starting to panic because Serena wouldn't wake up or stop bleeding.  
"Oh my goodness! Andy, she's not waking up." she called out to Andrew.  
"Call 911 and take her to the hospital while I get her ring.  
Lita carried Serena and put her on the sofa. She quickly went to the phone and dialed the number. She got a quick answer and told them the situation. They told her that an ambulance was on the way. At the time, Andrew put his hand into the pipe and found the ring.  
"Maybe this will wake her up." He said to himself He went and kneeled in front of the couch. He sighed as he looked over her fainted form.  
"Serena please wake up. I have your ring?" he said softly shaking her gently.  
"Andrew, I think she may have struck a vain when she accidentally cut herself"  
He sat her up and he sat down, placing her head in his lap.  
"Can you go get some paper towels?" Andrew said applying pressure to her.  
He slipped the ring back on her hand and kissed the back of her hand. He was hoping that this wasn't anything major. Darien walked into his apartment to see this affection seen.  
"What's going on here?" He asked dropping his briefcase with hurt in his eyes as well as anger.  
"Darien. You have to take her to the hospital. We'll be waiting for the ambulance forever. I didn't do anything to her if that what you're thinking." he said picking Serena up and carrying her over to Darien.  
"Will you put her in the car?" Darien asked.  
Andrew agreed and they left the apartment.  
"Hey! Wait for me!" Lita called running after them. 


	3. Results

Note: Sorry this chapter is so short but I really wanted to update. Now that I'm am working on several stories at once. Just please bare with me. Sorry for in grammatical errors it is after all 1:35am. Enjoy!!

"Mr. Chiba?" The nurse said coming out to him holding a clipboard.  
"Yes?" He asked standing up.  
"We had to give her a pint of blood. She'll be fine. She has been under a lot of stress it seems. We gave her a sedative to relax. We just want to ask you a few questions, but first I need you to fill out this paper work." She said handing him the clipboard and a pen.  
"Sure." He said flipping through the papers. As he was about to sit back down, Serena's friends and parents arrived.  
"Where's my baby?" Irene, Serena's mom, asked urgently "She's resting." He said softly.  
"Why? What's going on? Did you hurt her?" She asked jumping to conclusions.  
She grabbed his neck and started choking him "What have you done to my baby?" She screeched.  
"Mama-Kino, he didn't do anything to her. She made an accident and cut herself." Lita jumped up and explained pulling her away from Darien.  
"Oh" She said sniffling. Serena's father Kenji, wrapped an arm around his wife and tried to calm her. The nurse came back into the waiting room.  
"Mr. Chiba, Dr. Green will see you now." she announced.  
"We're coming too. We are Serena's parents." Kenji stated with authority.  
The nurse simply nodded and they followed her into the doctor's office. Once they were all seated, the doctor cleared his throat.  
"Hey, how's everyone. First off I am clearly surprised to see Serena here. Mr. Chiba, you may not know but I've been the Tuskino's family doctor since forever. So I am a concerned friend as well. I had some tests done to make sure everything with her is fine. First question. Do you ever beat on her? Examining the cut it looked like someone did it." He said rambling through some papers.  
"What! You think I would try to kill her? For goodness sake, I love her. For your information, she did that to herself." He said yelling at the doctor, leaning over the desk.  
Kenji jumped up and pulled Darien back into his seat.  
"Calm down son." Kenji murmured.  
"That's what they all say, I love her, she did it to herself, anyway…moving on, so maybe she tried to kill herself. Is she harboring some deep dark secret? Maybe she was afraid you would leave her if she was pregnant or something like that…Oh, I'm just grasping at straws. We gave her a pregnancy test. The results are in and since you are or could be the father and these are her parents- you may look at them." He said quickly moving on.  
The nurse went over and handed the envelope to Darien.  
'I couldn't possibly be the father. I haven't touched her. Maybe it's that Seiya guy. I pray I'm wrong and she didn't betray me.' he though sighing praying his suspicions weren't true.  
With shaky hands he open the envelope and his heart beat sped up. The tests were negative. He sat back in relief.  
"What does it say?" Serena's mom asked with a hint of hope in her voice.  
"She's not." Darien said running a hand through his hair.  
"When are you two going to give me a grandbaby? I'm not getting any younger." She said huffing disappointedly.  
"One day" Darien simply answered praying they'd make it that far to have them. 


	4. Awakened

-1Note: What's up! Here's an update, enjoy. Sorry it's so short.

Darien sat by Serena's hospital bedside asleep. She woke up and looked around. She saw her parents and friends sleep and Darien asleep beside her. She smiled slightly at the sight. He had roses in his arms for her. Her smile disappeared slightly. The last person who had given her roses was Seiya. Thought of him made her kind of sad.

Flashback 

Serena and Seiya sat in the park quietly.

"I have a surprise for you." Seiya said breaking the silence.

She looked at him startled.

"What's the surprise? Oh great one!"

"This" he said handing her roses and a mint green bunny rabbit. She smile and hugged him Seiya.

"You're the best friend a girl could have." she said warmly.

"You're welcome." He said with disappointment laced in his voice.

She pulled away and looked into his eyes, she could see that was not the answer she was looking for.

End of Flashback 

Sitting up slightly, she leaned over and pushed some stray strands from over Darien's eyes. She laid back down and thought a moment. Her birthday was coming up.

"Darien" She whispered becoming restless

He woke up to the sound of her voice.

"You're awake." He said quietly.

He got up and sat on the edge of the bed close to her. He handed her the roses.

"Thanks" she said kind of uncomfortable.

Roses usually cheered her up but she laid them beside her. It hurt Darien for a second but he didn't show it.

"So… how do you feel?" he asked fiddling with the sheets.

"Fine. I'm just ready to go home and theses stitches irritate me." She said softly showing him her wrist and hand.

His finger followed the outside of the stitches and then he gently kissed the palm of her hand. She smiled at him and that made him feel happy.

"When do I go home?" She asked him again.

"Tomorrow. They just want to make sure you are okay for tonight. We'll leave first thing in the morning." he murmured pushing hair from her face.

"She's awake." Serena's dad said awaking.

Kenji then gently shook his wife. She opened her eyes and looked dead ahead.

"My baby." She said running to hug her daughter.

"Mom" She said as her mother embraced her.

Kenji came over wrapped his arms around his daughter and wife. Darien suddenly felt as if he didn't belong, so he excused himself from the room quietly.


	5. Side Effects Part 1

Note: What's up! Here's an update, enjoy. Sorry it's so short.

Serena woke up to the smell of pancakes the next morning. She opened one praying she was not in the hospital. To her surprise she woke up in her and Darien's bedroom. She sat up slowly and crawled to the side of the bed.

"Home" was all she could say.

Sitting on the edge she looked around the familiar room and her eyes rested on the night stand. She opened the drawer and picked up the phonebook. Something was leading her to do what she did. She started looking up numbers. She turned carefully to the K section hoping that Seiya and his brothers phone numbers would still be in there. She found that Yaten was listed and still in town. She dialed the number quickly. She was beginning to get nervous.

"Hello" Yaten greeted.

"Hi, Yate. It's me Serena." She said softly.

"Hey girl, I haven't heard from you in awhile." He said.

"Yeah, things happen. Sorry, I've been so busy."

"So, How have you been?"

"Well, I just came from the hospital. I made an accident and cut myself."

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, of course. Anyways, I was just wondering if you had heard from Seiya or Taiki. You know Seiya and I were pretty close. "

"Yeah, Taiki is doing good. He's is studying abroad right now. Seiya is in Kyoto making new songs for his upcoming album. Why?"

"I- I was just asking- you know to check up on you three but look, I have to go so maybe I'll talk to you later."

"Sure, okay. Bye"

"Bye" She said hanging up.

Getting off the bed she she walked to the kitchen. She saw a bittersweet picture. Darien was obviously cooking them breakfast in an apron but he was crying silently.

"What's wrong?" She asked going up to him quickly.

He was surprised to see her up.

"Oh… I'm fine, just doing some thinking." He said wiping his eyes.

He turned away from her back to fixing their plates. He had happened to hear part of her conversation. The part about Seiya. He had no idea why she'd try to call him. Sighing, Serena turned around and sat at the dining room table.

'Fine' She thought, ' Why doesn't he let me in all the way? I thought we had moved past this stage of communication long ago. Maybe I should try to find Seiya, but I wanna stay with Darien. What is going on with me? Maybe it's the dumb medication.'

Darien entered sitting a plate of her favorites in front of her. He then sat down with his own plate.

"Um… can I ask you something?" She asked nervously.

"Sure." He said giving her the floor.

"uh…can I start making plans for our wedding like the guest list?" She asked, wondering to herself why did that just come out of her mouth.

It was totally random. Darien was again surprised by her. He smiled at her softly.

"Sure. If that makes you happy. I just wanted to finish up my last month of studies. So I won't get bogged down with both plans and work." He said continuing his smile.

She was surprised that he was willing to actually start. Maybe that was a good start. She smiled at him happily.

"You won't get bogged down. All you have to do is get sized. I have the girls to help me, oh so will Andrew since he's your best man. They'll help until you can start." She said starting to get excited.

She dug into her plate taking a huge bite of pancakes. She then jumped up and hugged him tightly. She game him a sticky kiss and went back to her seat.

"I love you." She said digging back into her plate.

"What was all that for?" He asking laughing.

"For being you." She said with a mouthful of food.  
She then inhaled her food as usual. As she took her last bite, she felt slightly sick. She began to turn green. She jumped up quickly and ran to the bathroom and puked up all of her food. Darien came in after her and pulled her hair away from her face.

"Are you okay? Maybe you should go lie back down. You probably don't have a full apetite back since the medication. You can think about wedding plans later." He said gently.

"I think I just at too fast. You could be right."

"Yeah, it's probably some side effect. I still want you to go back to bed." He said firmly but softly.

He then picked her up bridal style and carried her back to bed.

Note: Sorry, I'm just getting a little bored with this story. There is still more to come. I promise.


	6. Side Effects Part 2

-1Note: Sorry for the wait. I've been in summer school. I still am but I found some time to actually write. Enjoy!

Waking up again for the second time that day, Serena looked over at her alarm clock: it read one o'clock. Getting up she went to the bathroom and took a hot steamy shower. She was wondering if that medicine made her sick. Looking down at her scarred hand. She washed her hand gingerly trying to make sure she didn't mess up any of the stitches. Then she washed herself and grabbed a towel. She walked over to her mirror and wiped the water. As she looked at herself she noticed that Seiya was standing behind her. Jumping, she turned around to see no one.

"Whoa." she muttered shaking her head.

She quietly exited the bathroom wondering what was wrong with her. She noticed that Darien was placing a nice outfit out for her.

"Thank you" She said softly wiping water off of her face.

"You're welcome" He said smiling at her.

She went over to her dresser and took out some under garments. Darien respected Serena's privacy so he left the room. She closed the door with a soft click and began to dress. When she was finished, she towel blotted her hair and left the room. She went into the living room to no sign of Darien. She did notice a letter though saying he was going out for a while and would be back a little later. Shrugging she left the apartment to go down to the lobby to check her mailbox. She pressed the button for the elevator. When it came she stepped in to see an elder heading down to the lobby floor also. They spoke greeting to each other. Serena felt a smile creep to her face. Hopefully she could see herself old in love one day. With Darien or Seiya? When the door opened they stepped out and went their separate ways. Serena went to her and Darien's mail slot. She received a letter from her parents , grandparents and Seiya. Her birthday was only a few days away. Her heart beat sped up some at his cursive writing on the envelope. She opened his quickly to see a card. The card read: Happy Birthday to someone who is very special. Through the time I've known you, you've changed me. Even if I'm not there, you are a true friend to me. I am truly sorry for how I treated you the last time I was there. Take the money as a token of my friendship.- Love Seiya. P.S. keep smiling that beautiful smile of yours and don't let anyone ever steal your joy.

Wiping a few stray tears away from her eyes she counted the few hundred dollars with a smile. 'That was sweet of him' She thought happily thinking of the things she could buy. She placed the money back in the card. She read through the other cards that were sent cheerfully making her way back to her apartment. Maybe everything was going to start looking up for her. She made her way to Darien's study to start working on the guest list. As she started writing down names and thought came to her- How could she marry Darien if part of her still loved Seiya? She sighed and looked up at the ceiling. Why was she unnecessarily stressing herself out?

"Why am I stressing so?" She said aloud to no one.

Figuring she needed some fresh air and quickly left the apartment and everything behind.

A couple of hours later….

Walking in the apartment with a puppy in his arms, Darien smiled. The puppy had a navy blue ribbon with pink stripes around its neck. It was a black lab. He closed the door and headed to the bed room to find his angel sleeping.

"Serena" He said sweetly, "Wake up."

She peeped open one eye and closed it back.

"Please go away. I'm sleeping" She said annoyed at him for interrupting a really good dream.

"Sure, Andrew and I was out early and I got this for you." He said gently sitting the puppy beside her.

He was kind of hurt by her rudeness but shook it off. It was Serena. Once Serena was sure he was out of the room and she turned over and looked at the cute puppy. The puppy simply stared at her in wonder.

"Hi puppy." She said quietly, gently picking it up. She turned the puppy side ways to look for a name tag.

"I see no name so I guess I'll call you Hope, because I'm losing hope in this relationship." She murmured.

Darien was close to the door listening. He couldn't believe he heard what he thought he heard. His heart dropped into his stomach and it felt as though his world was crumbling around him. He knew he wasn't going to give up on them that easily. He walked into the living room sadly.

'She's been so distant lately. She acts like she can't stand to be in the same room with me nowadays. What have I done?" He thought bitterly.

He dropped his head into his hands.

Serena got off the bed with Hope in her arms.

"Darien…" she called softly entering into the living room

"What" He asked, not changing positions.

"I'm sorry." She said quietly.

He stood up and looked at her blankly.

"No you're not. Whatever made you mad at me, I probably deserved it." He said walking into the kitchen.

"Yes, I am! It's totally me. I don't know what's going on with me. I'm just stressed a little. It's really my fault." She protested following him.

"Then tell me what I have done that has hurt you so much. Is it because I've been gone so long and that you've fell in love with someone else? Like Seiya?" He questioned leaning over the counter not looking at her.

Darien was not a very sensitive person in the past but she could tell that he had changed over time.

"No, that's not it. Things have been bugging me so that I haven't been able to tell you about yet." She said carefully putting the puppy down so it wouldn't hurt her hand.

She walked over to him and pull him up to face her.

"Why were you crying this morning?" She asked softly.

"Because I'm grateful that you were alright and I was afraid of losing you. I still feel like I could possibly lose you." He said quietly, " Listen, I'm kinda tired. I'll sleep in the living room tonight."

He gently removed her hand and began to walk away. She grabbed his arm.

"You don't have to. You can stay in there with me. I don't want you by yourself." She said pulling him to the bedroom with her.


	7. Happy Birthday

Note: Sorry for not updating! I hope everyone had a great thanksgiving, I ate a lot lol. Thanks to all of those that support this story! Enjoy

The next morning, Serena woke up with only a note in bed. The note was from Darien saying that he was gone to work and would be home by four. He also told her he wanted her to go pamper herself with the money left in the kitchen and buy a new dress for dinner that night. AND happy birthday. She got out of bed with excitement. She grabbed her short silk robe and wrapped it around herself and danced to the kitchen singing happy birthday. She picked up the soft orange roses that were left on the counter next to the money. She inhaled their beautiful scent. She carried them to the bathroom. She was so happy they made up last night and now was the new beginning they really needed. She turned on the hot water and plugged the tub. She then took one of the roses and began to put the petals in her bath water. She grabbed some of her mineral salts and sprinkled them into the tub. She just couldn't wait for her bath! She then rushed to the living room and turned on the stereo looking for some soft music. As she found a station, the door bell rang. She simply didn't think of asking who it could be thinking Darien may have decided to come home earlier than she thought. As she made her way to the door her puppy started barking and the phone started ringing.

She sighed and went to the phone first.

"Happy Birthday Rena!" came Andrew's voice.

"Thanks, Andy! Hey, Hope needs a walk, I hate to sound lazy but can you come get her for me and walk her?" She asked pouting sweetly through the phone.

"Sure hun! I'll be there in like ten to fifteen minutes."

"Thanks, bye" She said quickly as the door bell rang again.

"Coming!!" She called swiftly making her way to the door.

She opened the door and looked up to see Seiya standing there with a present.

"Happy Birthday Beautiful." He said smiling at her.

She was shocked but she felt herself blush.

"What are you doing here?" She said pulling her robe around her tightly.

It barely covered everything since she was completely naked underneath. Seiya was just speechless. The royal blue night robe complemented her eyes magnificently. Her flushed cheeks made her look even more beautiful and her wavy hair way just gorgeous.

"This is for you." He murmured handing her the gift stepping into the apartment.

"Thank you." She said softly taking the box.

"Ooops!" She called out running quickly out of the room. Puzzled, Seiya closed the door behind him and followed her quickly.

"Hot!" Serena screeched pulling her hand away from the faucet quickly.  
She mumbled a few curse word under her breath. Seiya found her nursing her hand on the bathroom floor. He quickly turned off the faucet water and chuckled.

"Can I see your hand?" he asked gently picking her up off the floor.

She mutely handed him her hand. He rubbed it gently making the pain go away.

"Thanks." She said quietly.

"You're welcome." He said taking her other hand.

"Ow!" She yelped pulling her other hand away.

"What happened" He asked concerned.

"I cut myself washing dishes." She said softly examining her hand for further damages.

He lifted her chin to he could see her face.

"You know I missed you" He murmured tracing her jaw line.

"I missed you too." She smiled shyly at him.

He moved in on her slowly, fingering her hair.

"I love the hair cut." He complemented.

"Thanks." She said taking a small step backwards, bumping into the wall.

He took one large step closing the gap between them, their faces only inches apart.

"I love you Serena. I never stopped." He said tracing her lower lip with his thumb.

She moved her face away from and closed her eyes.

" You said you loved me as a friend in that card." She said not wanting to hear those words after everything with Darien seemed to be back on the right track.

"I just wrote that part just in case you read it to Darien or one of your friends.

She looked back at him to see if there was any truth in his words. His eyes were darkened with only lust, not one shred of love. If love was there, she couldn't tell.

" Get away from me." she said calmly, " You don't love me. You only say things to get what you want. What's your true reason for coming? To destroy my happiness?"

"How can you say that? I left to give you space. You've been the selfish person here. I left cause I loved you and I know what it like to love! I left because I loved you to give you room for happiness. What about my needs, my happiness? Plus, you give Darien what he wants when he says he loves you" He protested angrily.

"Yeah right, Darien says he loves me and he expects nothing in return. I'm sorry that you were hurt Seiya but I told you from the beginning I only wanted friendship between us, you couldn't handle that." She spit back.

"Ha! Is that all you wanted? Why did you take all those gifts from me? Why did you recently call my brother asking about me? You know you want me."

"Get out of my house." She said coldly, losing all patience with him.

"Look, I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking straight. I didn't come here to argue." He said.

"To late for that." She said exiting the bathroom heading to the front door.

"You don't have enough strength to make me leave." He said following her lazily.

"I'll just call the police." She said picking up her cordless phone.

Quickly Seiya grabbed the phone and hit her on the head knocking her out.

Finally soaking in her bath water that was now freezing cold, Serena cried. She dunk her head letting the water consume her wishing it would erase all that happened to her. She came up for air and grabbed a towel and wiped her face. She sighed and climbed out the tub. She had one hour before Darien got home but she knew she had to put on a brave face for him. She still couldn't believe Seiya. She wrapped her towel around her and grabbed her blow dryer and began doing her hair. She still hadn't found a dress for tonight. She wasn't even up for going out at the moment but she didn't want to the whole day to be ruined but it already was. She then exited her bathroom and dressed quickly. She needed to be back home before Darien got there. He had already called the house like four times but she didn't pick up so he would think she was out shopping.

She closed the apartment up tightly and head to Andrew's apartment. She only knocked once before he opened the door. He gently took her in his arms and hugged her fiercely.

"Are you sure you're okay?" He asked softly stroking her back.

"Yeah, you still promise not to tell Darien?" She asked hesitantly.

"I promised I wouldn't but you still have to tell him what happened. I know it wasn't your fault." He murmured.

She felt the tears spill down her face.

"Thanks Drew. I am so glad you found me." She hiccuped.

"I should've came when you asked me. It's my fault." He said guiltily.

"It's not. Look, I just want the rest of today go on as normal. Just come with me to find a dress." She said wiping away her tears.

"Are you sure?" He asked wondering where this strong Serena had come from.

"Yeah, what's happened can't be changed." She murmured letting go of him.

"He's already paying for what he did Sere." He said

"I know, let's go." She said.

"Alright, come on." Andrew said checking his pocket for his keys and wallet.

He closed up his apartment and he took her hand and they headed out on their way.


	8. All in One

Note: Thanks for all the review. I own the story not the characters or the song lyrics.

That night Serena walked into the house feeling slightly better after her time with Andrew. She wore a long black dress with a sheer upper chest area and thin straps. She had got the ends of her hair curled under to give her layers volume. Darien was waiting on her in the living room. He was dress in a tuxedo.

"Hi, sweetheart. Happy Birthday." He said bowing in front of her.

"Thank you." She said smiling then courtesying

He went over and hugged and kissed her. She felt really uncomfortable and tried not to show it.

"Bye Hope." Serena said breaking free from Darien to pet her puppy's head.

"Do a good job of guarding the place." Darien said laughing.

The puppy barked happily wagging her tail. Darien and Serena grabbed their coats and left. When they got into the car they began talking.

"So, how was your day?" Darien asked trying to make small talk.

Serena couldn't speak because of the large lump in her throat and tears were ready to spill over.

"What's wrong?" he asked looking over at her.

"Nothing's wrong. I had a pretty good day." She lied.

"Oh." he said not fully believing her.

Once they reached the restaurant, Serena looked on in awe. She had never seen or been there. Only heard of it's reputation. '_Star Rose' _

"This place is huge." She murmured as they pulled up into valet.

"You'll love it." He said as the parking attendant came to his side.

They were escorted out of the car and handed a ticket. The door was opened for them and they stepped into the foyer.

"Welcome to Star Rose." A hostess greeted them, "How many in your party."

"Two, I have reservations under Chiba." Darien smiled at her.

The woman looked over her list and nodded with approval.

"Okay, Right this way" She said charmingly.

She lead them over to a golden elevator. The place was magnificent. Their heels clicked across the light colored marble. Soft music played throughout the establishment. The place was busy with people. Serena was slightly overwhelmed. She wondered how Darien was able to pay for the reservations here. The reputation for this place was extremely high. You couldn't get in here unless you had a lot of money. Where did he get the money to pay for this day? They stepped into the elevator and Serena held onto Darien's arm tightly with excitement.

"This is perfect." She murmured.

Darien simply smiled. This was going to go perfect- or so he hoped. Everything was going to go right- he just felt it. He felt like Serena went back into her shell in the car but he was hoping to bring her back out and keep her out. The elevator carried them to the top floor . They stepped out onto a dark marble floor. The roof was glass top so they could see a clear view of the moon and stairs. There was a stage that was set up as if someone was going to perform.

The hostess led them to a large love seat table that was in the center of the room.

"Here's your table." the hostesses said gleeming.

"Thank you." Darien said pulling a twenty out of his pocket handing it to her.

She bowed and left.

"This is nice" Serena said sitting down in the nice couch.

"Isn't it." Darien said sitting beside her, "But it's about to get better"

She looked at him suspiciously.

"Just wait." He said smiling.

The lights dimmed and the stage light came on. A man came on with a big cheesy smile.

"Good evening all" He said gladly, "Tonight we have a special treat for a lovely lady."

Darien looked at Serena and took her hand.

"This night is going to be very exciting. First we have 98 degrees performing." He announced.

Serena eyes lit up as she held onto Darien's hand.

98 degrees came into view when the curtains pulled back. They were all dressed in black tuxedos, smiling.

"Hello out there. We are here to wish a Serena Chiba a Happy Birthday from her husband and us. We'll be singing Never Giving Up." Nick said.

Serena smiled brightly with tears shining in her eyes. She looked up at Darien.

"You told them we were married?" She asked laughing whole heartedly.

"Yes. We are gettting married in two months aren't we?" He asked smiling.

"That early? I guess we'll have to work fast." She said, "But how were you able to make that announcement?"

"Shh. They are starting." Darien said smirking looking toward the stage.

The music started...

_Tell me what's been going on. How did our love go so wrong? Cause I know that I made some mistakes. Oh baby. And girl it's written on your face that you wanna walk away and just say that your feelings have changed, oh yeah. I know you still need me. I can see it in your eyes, you're afraid of feelings. But girl you can't deny... You know that I've tried a thousand times to win your love but it's never enough, It's been a dream for you and me and girl can't you see that I'm not giving up. I'm never giving up..._

At this time Darien was escorting her to the stage because the group member motioned for her to come up. The crowd from the other tables watched in awe of the show. Serena danced on stage with the group members as a crowd started to form around the stage. Serena couldn't believe that any of this was real. She forgot about Seiya and the whole incident from earlier. As the song ended, everyone clapped and cheered.

"We have one more song to sing. A friend of ours let us use his song for the evening for this special occasion." Jeff announced.

"It's called Lately by Tyrese." Drew stated.

As everyone listened to the song dancing with their mates, Darien stepped onto the stage and took Serena into his arms. Serena held onto him tightly feeling so safe and warm as the lyrics floated around them.

_Lately, have I told you I loved you...Lately, have I told you- you still mean the world to me...Have I told you I love you? I'll be your wishing well tell me what you want..._

Soon, the song ended and Serena and Darien applauded with the whole crowd. Serena then quickly hugged each group member thanking them for the song and everything. They then made their way back to their seats to enjoy the rest of the evening.

"Darien, this is all too much. You're the best." She said gratefully wiping a straying tear away.

"No, you are the best. I had to think of a creative way to let you know just how much I love you. I met Nick back in America so I was able to call him up for the favor." He said softly holding her in his arms.

"I don't deserve it." She murmured softly looking up at him.

He simply grabbed her cheek gently and kissed her lips softly.

"You deserve so much more." he whispered.

"I only need you." She said gripping him tighter.

He kissed the top of her forehead and he felt as if they were now on the right path.

2 months later...

"If there's anyone who thinks these two should not be wed, speak now or forever hold your peace." the priest announced.

Time the words left the priest's lips, the door to the church opened and Seiya entered. Serena's face paled as he watched her walk up the aisle. She prayed with all her might that he didn't ruin her day and here he was prancing in all late. Darien glared at he figure that dared to ruin their day. Everyone watched quietly. Seiya stepped over into an aisle and took a seat.

"Sorry, I was just running a little late." He spoke looking directly at Serena.

Serena looked down and away from him.

"Now, with no further interruptions. You may kiss your bride." the priest annouced.

Darien lifted her face to his too see tears stream down her lovely face. He couldn't tell what was running through her mind but she looked frightened.

"I'm not going anywhere, if that's what you're thinking." He whispered to her.

She looked up at him in confusion. She decided not to worry about what he was talking about. They were just simply standing there looking at each other-not know what to do. The priest coughed a little breaking their trance.

"It's okay son, you can kiss her now." the man joked.

The crowd began to laugh, causing the awkward moment to pass. Darien laughed and kissed his bride full heartedly.

"Now may I introduce the new Mr. And Mrs. Darien Mamoru Chiba."

The crowd stood cheering and clapping. Darien and Serena smiled at each other and headed down the aisle. The wedding party filed out behind them and soon the congregation followed out all but Seiya. He sat there not moving. He simply stared at the pew. He was too late. He wanted to apologize for his actions before she got married. It was too late. Did Darien know that he raped her? More than likely he did. He felt so ashamed, he began to wonder if everyone knew. He'd never be able to get back in her good graces- ever. I guess when they say love make you do stupid things...it really did. He felt a light tap on his shoulder and he stood up stiffly. He turned around slowly hoping to see her standing before him in her beautiful wedding gown. She did look magnificent in her all white off the shoulder gown. Her veil was beautiful with white roses and her long hair down her back in spiral curls. He could just see her standing there with a slight frown on her gorgeous face. To his surprise, Andrew was standing there with a scowl on his face.

"What the hell are you doing here?" He asked coldly.

Seiya gulped, he wasn't ready for another encounter with him.

"Just seeing them off." He tried to say calmly.

"I thought I told you never to show your face again." Andrew said angrily cracking his knuckles.

"I know, I know, I thought I'd try to come and apologize without being noticed." he said honestly.

"You're lucky Serena didn't want to press charges against you not to destroy your career but you need to stay away from her. Like I said before if you try to ever come near her again I will kill you. I still guess those few days you did spend in jail didn't help clear things up for you." Andrew said losing all patience.

"I know, look, you'll never see me again. I'm headed to Australia now. I just wanted to try to apologize."

"Just go. You're not wanted." Andrew said pointing to the door.

Seiya simply nodded. He took out a pair of shades from his inner jacket pocket and slipped them on. He walked briskly pass Andrew with out looking back.

The End...

Epilogue...

Serena and Raye walked through the mall peacefully after three hours of shopping.

"So, Serena what do you want to do next?" Raye asked.

"I don't know but I really need to sit down." She said grabbing her side.

"Alright." Raye said helping her to the nearest bench.

"I guess we really did shop til we almost dropped today. Sere, are you okay?" Raye asked sitting their bags down.

"No, I've been feeling like this for weeks." Serena said taking a deep breath.

"Is there something you may not be telling me, that I may need to know?" She asked

" Well before you came to pick me up, Andrew took me to get a check up since my car is in the shop. You know, how I'm always trying to stay fit." She began.

"And, what does that have to do with you being sick?" Raye asked

"Well, my doctor, Vanessa, told me that I'm going to have a baby." Serena said bitterly- close to tears.

"Sere! That's wonderful! Does Darien know?" Raye exclaimed excitedly thinking of all the cute close to buy.

"No. That's what I'm afraid of . Him knowing."

Raye looked at her quizzically. Serena had a lot of explaining to do.

The End...LOOK FOR NEVER GIVING UP 2


End file.
